Life Changed.

My life changed when I lost the weight.

Coming to terms with it all has been hard. I know that probably sounds ridiculous, but this hasn't been easy.

I'm still not "skinny" and my body has lots of flaws, but it's mine and I have and still do work hard for it. I love that it takes me running for miles or hiking with friends. I'm not perfect but my life has changed. And for that, I'm so thankful!

Before

After

Never Had I Ever…

One thing most people probably don’t expect to hear me say is “Never had I ever dieted before last year”. But it’s true, I hadn’t.

Sure maybe a few times I decided I should “eat healthier” or “watch what I eat”, but never had I counted calories, tried Atkins/South Beach/Weight Watchers/etc., started up a program or even dropped a pound. Most people would probably say I was just lazy (probably true). But in all honesty, I was scared. I didn’t think I could succeed. I had no confidence in myself to be able to do it. I owe it all to one friend who truly believed I could do it. She knew I could, even when I didn’t. She changed my life by being my fitspiration (fit inspiration).

So I’m here to say, whether you want to lose weight, start running, playing a new sport or just have a healthier lifestyle: YOU CAN DO IT. If I can do it, I KNOW you can too. Start small and stay committed, the rest will come.

#Myth

Once I lose the weight, it’ll be easy to keep it off. #Myth

As I watched Biggest Loser for the first time ever the other day (thanks Netflix) a contestant said “I’ve lost 200lbs in my life”. No he wasn’t 200lbs lighter than he once was, he was actually at his heaviest weight ever. What he meant is he had dieted before and lost 25lbs once, 50lbs another time, 30lbs another time but he always gained it back (and then some). Dieting is hard. Maintenance isn’t easy.

One thing I did when I started losing weight was call my dieting a “lifestyle change”. The entire time I was petrified of gaining the weight back (maintenance scared the heck out of me), so I knew this had to be a “lifestyle change” instead of a diet. I have two phases of my “lifestyle change” – lose mode and maintenance mode. 

I was in “lose mode” for 7 months. In those 7 months I lost 83lbs. After that I went into “maintenance mode” and lost 2lbs in the first two months because I was being very careful about not gaining weight. Since then I still have to be careful about what I eat. I eat a lot of salads, fruits and yogurt. I also exercise (run) regularly. I love what I eat normally, but sometimes I get off track. I'll go out to eat and indulge in one too many rolls or a couple too many beers. Maintenance still scares me (6 months in!). It's not all easy, once the weight comes off... but believe me, it's worth it! 

Comparison

 Nicole of Living Life Lite often listens to me rant and rave about life and then sets me straight. I’m eternally grateful for this. This week she did the exact same thing with a simple quote.

I had a bad night this week. I was letting comparing myself to someone else make me feel horrible about myself. I wasn’t as skinny, I wasn’t as fast, so therefore I was fat and I was slow. I seriously started pointing out every negative about myself (my belly jiggles, my thighs jiggle, my calves are huge). There was nothing good. I judged myself for my “short” run of 3 miles and “slow” pace of 8:58/mile (this being a fast pace for me). Normally I would be happy I sweated it out in the humidity and kept a faster pace than my long runs… I was just not happy with anything. I was comparing it all to someone else and their abilities.

After ranting this all to Nicole, she simply said: “comparison is a thief of joy”.

Now my background on my phone

That stopped me in my tracks. Wow. How true is that?! I’m normally so happy and thankful for my ability to run and for my 85lb lighter body. I’m not the best runner and I’m not the skinniest person but I’m usually just fine with that. Why was I letting comparison steal my joy?

I’m sure we all struggle with comparison – not just in looks or sports. Maybe it’s careers, grades, finances. What comparison is stealing your joy? What are you going to do to stop it?